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Decision CRTC 2001-385
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Ottawa, 5 July 2001
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Groupe TVA inc.
Across Canada
2000-2307-8, 2000-2308-6
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26 March 2001 Public Hearing
in Montréal
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Licence renewals for the French-language national television
network TVA and for the French-language television programming
undertaking CFTM-TV Montréal
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1. |
The Commission renews the licences of the French-language
national television network TVA and of the French-language
television programming undertaking CFTM-TV Montréal, from
1 September 2001 until 31 August 2008.
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2. |
The licences will be subject to the conditions stipulated in this
decision and in the licences to be issued. Moreover, when the
authority granted today in Decision CRTC 2001-384 to transfer
effective control of TVA to Quebecor Média inc. is implemented, the
conditions established by the Commission with respect to that
transaction, as set out in Appendices 2, 3 and 4 of this decision,
will come into force as conditions of licence.
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3. |
The renewal applications for these licences have been examined in
the context of implementing the Commission’s television policy
Building on success – A policy framework for Canadian television,
released in 1999. According to the definition set out in the policy,
Groupe TVA inc. is one of the "largest multi-station ownership
groups"—in other words, one of the groups licensed to operate
in several provinces with a potential reach of more than 70% of the
audience in its language of operation. The distribution of its
service, which has been licensed nationally since 1998, enables it
to reach Francophones and Francophiles across Canada.
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4. |
The TV policy provides that licence renewals for the conventional
television stations of a group will be examined at the same time, to
enable the Commission on that occasion to discuss the licensee's
comprehensive strategic plan. Groupe TVA inc. consists of the TVA
French-language network, its mother station, CFTM-TV Montréal, and
the regional stations CFCM-TV Québec, CHEM-TV Trois-Rivières,
CFER-TV Rimouski and its transmitter CFER-TV-2 Gaspé Nord, CHLT-TV
Sherbrooke and CJPM-TV Chicoutimi and its transmitter CJPM-TV-1
Chambord. Because there is a wide variance in the licence expiry
dates for these stations, the Commission has not proceeded to
renewal of the group, as would otherwise been the case under the
policy. The Commission will start examining the renewal of all
licences of the regional stations in 2003, the year in which
CFCM-TV's licence term expires, in order to proceed, pursuant to the
policy, to the examination of Groupe TVA as a whole in 2008.
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Issues raised during the hearing
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5. |
At the hearing, the Commission discussed the implementation of
the TV policy, particularly with respect to the following issues:
priority programming during prime time; the licensee’s
contributions to independent production; commitments to local and
regional programming, and to the reflection of the realities of
Francophones outside Quebec; contributions to Canadian theatrical
feature films; ethnic and cultural diversity; closed-captioning;
descriptive video; and the broadcast of commercial advertising and
infomercials.
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Priority programming
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6. |
The Commission indicated in the TV policy that the largest
multi-station ownership groups would be required to broadcast, on
average, 8 hours per week of priority Canadian programs during
the peak viewing period, that is, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
from Monday to Sunday. The Commission also designated new categories
of priority programs: long-form documentaries, magazine programs
that promote Canadian artists and regionally produced programs other
than local news and sports.
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7. |
The licensee indicated at the hearing that the broadcast of
priority programs is the core of its programming strategy and
primarily involves drama and variety. This type of programming
continues to be very popular with viewers. The licensee added that
it would keep essentially the same orientation for its programming
for the next licence term and it committed to comply with the
requirements of the policy in this regard. Conditions of licence
relating to the broadcast of priority programs, and to all
commitments concerning priority programming offered in the benefits
package associated with the transfer of effective control of TVA to
Quebecor Média inc., are appended to this decision. Furthermore,
considering the huge popularity of drama programs among viewers, the
Commission expects the licensee, over the next licence term,
to maintain the same number of hours per week that it allocated to
these programs during the 2000-2001 fall/winter season.
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Independent production
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8. |
The Commission notes that, during the current licence term, TVA
has complied with the Commission's expectation regarding independent
production. In its licence renewal application, TVA indicated that
it intends to follow the same policy on this matter by seeing to a
further consolidation of its ties with the independent production
sector.
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9. |
During the hearing, a number of interveners indicated that the
baseline for investments in independent production should be $20
million in the first year of the next licence term and should
gradually increase. In its renewal application and in reply to the
interventions, the licensee indicated that the 1999-2000 year during
which it allocated $20 million could not be taken as a
baseline. It argued that the amounts directed to independent
production were greater than planned, reflecting spending on
programs produced to mark the transition to the year 2000.
However, it stated that it was committing to spend $16 million
on independent production in the first year of its new licence term
and would achieve a total of $20 million in 2007-2008.
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10. |
The Commission expects the licensee to honour the
commitment it made at the hearing and in its renewal application to
allocate a minimum of $16 million in 2001-2002 to the
independent production sector (producers not affiliated with Groupe
TVA inc.), with this amount increasing to a minimum of
$20 million in 2007-2008. To this would be added, as
applicable, any amount resulting from implementation of the benefits
package proposed as part of the transfer of effective control of TVA
to Quebecor Média inc.
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11. |
The Commission expects the licensee to gradually increase
its expenditures on independent production, at a rate of increase
similar to that which it has maintained in the past. For this
purpose, the licensee could consider the expanded range of priority
programs, identified in the TV policy, some of which are in
categories for which the independent producers outside Montréal
have developed some expertise.
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Local and regional programming
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12. |
The TV policy emphasizes that the Commission will no longer
require licensees to make quantitative commitments concerning local
news programs, but will expect them to meet the demands and reflect
the concerns of the communities they serve.
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13. |
The licensee explained during the hearing that its policy on
local programming is [translation] "to put the accent on
information." In addition to being broadcast regionally, local
programming can be broadcast on the network. With respect to
information programming, local news is broadcast at noon and
6 p.m., and brief local news segments are provided throughout
the day. In addition, each station broadcasts a daily program that
reflects the social and cultural circumstances of the community it
serves. Moreover, the financial forecasts filed by TVA as part of
its licence renewal process reflect an increase in news-related
expenditures throughout the new licence term.
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14. |
Given that the licences of the regional stations of Groupe TVA
inc. do not have to be renewed in the current proceeding, the
discussion at the hearing was more concerned with the overall
strategy adopted by the licensee concerning local and regional
programming. The Commission considers the issue of local programming
to be of primary importance and intends to conduct an examination of
the licensee's performance in this regard during the licence renewal
process for TVA's regional stations in 2003. Until then, the
Commission expects TVA to continue to meet the needs of the
communities served by its regional stations, not only in the area of
news, but also in terms of the development and broadcast of programs
in other content categories produced in the regions.
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15. |
The local audience of CFTM-TV Montréal, the network's flagship
station, is generally well served. The Commission encourages the
licensee to continue broadcasting programs such as "Coup de
chapeau", which specifically reflect the community aspect of
the Montréal region.
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Services to Francophones outside Quebec
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16. |
In 1998 (Decision CRTC 98-488), the Commission approved national
distribution of TVA's signal. At that time, the Commission imposed
conditions of licence based on the commitments made by the licensee,
in particular to:
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· broadcast a minimum of six (6) special events per year
reflecting the Francophone reality and experience outside Quebec;
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· include, as part of the TVA network programming, a weekly
30-minute program on Francophone life outside Quebec;
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· reinvest at least 43% of the excess of its revenues over
expenses related to the expanded distribution of its service
outside Quebec in the improvement of programming focusing on
Francophones outside Quebec.
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17. |
For the new licence term, the Commission continues to impose these
three conditions. Furthermore, it encourages the licensee to
increase its efforts to reflect the realities of Francophones in a
minority environment and to meet their needs for service as
effectively as possible. These conditions are appended to this
decision.
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18. |
In addition, the Commission then stated that it expected TVA to
expand its news coverage to better serve the Francophone population
outside Quebec. The licensee therefore proposed the creation of an
advisory committee, that includes public figures representing their
communities, to better meet the expectations of all Francophones in
Canada.
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19. |
The licensee pointed out that it has had many discussions with
stakeholders outside Quebec to determine the best way of involving
them in programs that reflect the realities of Francophones outside
Quebec. It emphasized that it is [translation] "developing
effective connections and procedures for using the services of
independent producers from outside Quebec."
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20. |
At the hearing, the groups representing Francophones outside
Quebec were enthusiastic about working with TVA's advisory committee
to determine what programming would best meet the needs and
expectations of Francophone communities living in a minority
environment. Ms. Aldéa Landry, in her capacity as Chair of
this committee, referred during the hearing to the intervention by
the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne as
follows:
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[translation]…this brief submitted by the Fédération
provides us with a sort of pathfinder for our committee's work so
we can represent the interests of our communities to TVA even more
effectively.
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21. |
The Commission notes the efforts by TVA since May 1999 to better
reflect the realities of Francophones outside Quebec. To this end,
it encourages TVA to continue consulting them and to provide
the best possible reflection of these communities to all
Francophones and Francophiles in Canada. Finally, the Commission encourages
TVA to continue its consultation activities with the advisory
committee, which is itself committed to cooperating more closely
with the Francophone groups in order to represent the interests of
the Francophone groups to TVA more effectively so as to motivate
them to increase their viewing of Canada's largest, private,
French-language general interest television undertaking.
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Canadian feature films |
22. |
As the licensee pointed out during the hearing, the number of
Canadian feature films it broadcasts has increased over the past
three years and, in its opinion, its investment in Canadian feature
films in recent years has been satisfactory. The Commission
considers, however, that this investment continues to be low
compared to that of the other French-language broadcasters. The
licensee added that it plans to devote much more time to
broadcasting Canadian feature films and that it intends to
incorporate Quebec cinema in its regular programming, but without
assigning it a specific niche.
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23. |
During the hearing, TVA agreed to commit to ensure [translation]
"an increased presence of Canadian films" in its
programming "…insofar as there is an increase in the number
of films available."
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24. |
The Association des réalisateurs et réalisatrices du Québec
intervened at the hearing to point out that:
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[translation] as television is naturally a window for cinema,
with a role in promoting it, [TVA] also has a responsibility not
only to broadcast cinema, but also to do so in a context that
enhances it.
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25. |
The Commission emphasizes the importance of the role that
broadcasters play in the process of developing Canadian cinema, both
by contributing financially and by airing Canadian feature films. It
notes the licensee's commitment to ensure a greater presence of
Canadian feature films and expects the number of Canadian
feature films broadcast on the TVA network, in the original
French-language version, or dubbed in French, to increase in each
year of the licence term.
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Advertising
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26. |
TVA indicated in its licence renewal application that it wishes
to be exempted from application of section 11(1) of the Television
Broadcasting Regulations, 1987 (the Regulations), under which a
licensee may not broadcast more than 12 minutes of advertising
material in any clock hour in a broadcast day. In this regard, it
wishes to benefit from greater flexibility in managing its
commercial inventory during peak viewing periods. The licensee
indicated that it wants to increase advertising during the peak
hours and reduce it the rest of the time. It proposes:
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[translation] that the advertising time on each of its stations
and its network be governed by a condition of licence allowing it
to calculate advertising material over a broadcast week.
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27. |
During the hearing, TVA was more specific on this subject,
indicating that it did not intend to exceed 14 minutes of
interruptions for advertising, all breaks combined, in any broadcast
hour. These 14 minutes would include commercial advertising,
public service announcements and promotions of Canadian programs.
The licensee added:
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[translation] We would agree to establish flexibility for
advertising in prime time for the seven-day week and to calculate
the average over this same period. The commercial inventory would
thus be efficiently used in the same time periods, from
6 p.m. to midnight, seven days a week.
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28. |
The Commission notes that the matter of advertising flexibility
was recently examined in the context of the TV policy. As a result
of its review of this matter, the Commission decided to maintain the
12 minute per clock hour limit on advertising.
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29. |
The Commission's concerns regarding this application are
essentially the same. The Commission remains concerned that too many
commercial messages could lead to a lessening of advertisers'
interest in television as an advertising medium, and a corresponding
reduction in the revenues earned by Canadian programming
undertakings. It is also concerned that the quality of programming
and the promotion of Canadian programs could suffer as a result.
Moreover, the network could neglect to broadcast public service
announcements that could affect society in general, because they
bring no direct revenue. Finally, the advertising market share of
the largest TV broadcasters could grow at the expense of the smaller
ones. This could lead to a reduction in local services provided by
the small broadcasters. These concerns were also raised by a number
of interveners at the hearing and in the written interventions
submitted to the Commission.
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30. |
In light of all of the above, and particularly the fact that the
Commission has so recently visited this matter in its TV policy, the
Commission denies the licensee's request. Accordingly, the
licensee is required to comply with section 11 of the
Regulations.
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31. |
Another concern raised by the Commission and by certain
interveners relates to the presentation of commercial products
during the broadcast of drama or other types of programs. The
Société des auteurs de radio, télévision et cinéma (Sartec) and
the Union des artistes are opposed to this form of advertising,
which makes the viewer captive. Sartec submitted during the hearing
that these insertions [translation] "threaten the integrity of
creative works by identifying them with a product", adding that
"practices have been introduced which mutilate the work in some
way or draw the attention away and infringe upon the author's
message." The Union des artistes indicated that it had
successfully negotiated the removal of one such insertion during a
broadcast.
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32. |
Over the years, advertisements in television programs have
actually taken various forms: use of a specific product directly in
programs, moving messages at the bottom of the screen, appearance of
a logo at the bottom of the screen, etc. The Commission intends to
closely monitor developments in the various forms of non-traditional
advertising.
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Infomercials
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33. |
During the hearing, the licensee indicated that infomercials
represent 8% of its programming schedule. The Commission noted the
increase in infomercials aired by TVA during the regulated period,
particularly on weekends and in the afternoon. The Commission is
concerned that this could be to the detriment of regular programs
that are broadcast. It notes, among other things, that these periods
were formerly devoted to the broadcast of feature films. Replying to
the Commission's concerns in this regard, the licensee maintained
that, despite the additional revenue source represented by
infomercials, it is [translation] "clearly not our intention to
expand in the area of infomercials."
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34. |
The Commission expects the licensee to ensure that the
time allocated to infomercials remains marginal in TVA's overall
programming schedule.
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Other issues
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Ethnic and cultural diversity
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35. |
The objectives of the Canadian television system in the area of
ethnic and cultural diversity are clearly set out in the TV policy:
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The system should be a mirror in which all Canadians can see
themselves. It should be one in which producers, writers,
technicians and artists from different cultural and social
perspectives have the opportunity to create a variety of
programming and to develop their skills.
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36. |
Moreover, the Commission indicated in the policy that it
expected:
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all conventional television licensees (at licensing or licence
renewal), to make specific commitments to initiatives designed to
ensure that they contribute to a system that more accurately
reflects the presence of cultural and racial minorities and
Aboriginal peoples in the communities they serve. Licensees are
expected to ensure that the on-screen portrayal of all minority
groups is accurate, fair and non-stereotypical.
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37. |
The Commission will issue in the near future a call for a
proposal and action plan for an industry and community task force to
address matters related to a better reflection of Canada’s
cultural diversity in broadcasting. The task force will identify
best practices for broadcasters so that cultural diversity is
achieved. The task force will also sponsor research that will serve
as a baseline for measuring progress, and help define issues and
present practical solutions. The Commission expects TVA to
participate in the work of this task force.
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38. |
TVA confirmed at the hearing that it had not established any
internal policy to ensure cultural diversity both on and off the
air, but because it was aware of this reality and of the growing
need to take it into account, it had adopted the following approach:
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[translation] Our own approach is not to dedicate specific
programs to cultural communities, but to integrate them into our
general programming.
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39. |
To illustrate, the licensee explained that, for news and public
affairs programming, it invites specialists from various cultural
communities, to cover international issues in particular. Concerning
the off-air aspect, TVA is of the opinion that such integration
[translation] "occurs naturally to some extent," and that
"the policy is to reflect the environment in which one lives as
faithfully as possible."
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40. |
At the hearing, however, TVA indicated its interest in being part
of a task force dealing with this issue, and expressed the hope that
its creation [translation] "will be more coordinated within
groups or associations to which we are already making a
contribution."
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41. |
The Association des réalisateurs et réalisatrices du Québec
(ARRQ) submitted that:
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[translation] besides news coverage and the on-screen presence
of public figures representing ethnic origins, diversity of voices
should also apply to the voices behind the camera, including the
voices of creators and writers who are saying other things, or
saying things in another way, or exploring the medium in another
way.
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42. |
Having reviewed the matter, the Commission wishes to ensure that
special attention is paid to this issue and that the large groups of
stations, by introducing specific measures, play a proactive role in
achieving this cultural objective. Therefore, the Commission
requires that TVA submit, within three months of the date of
this decision, corporate guidelines in the form of an action plan
for the new licence term.
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43. |
The Commission expects the licensee’s corporate plan to address
the presence of people from diverse backgrounds, both in programming
that the licensee produces and in programming that the licensee
acquires. As well, the report should address the way that cultural
minority groups are portrayed in programming. More specifically,
with respect to news programming, the Commission expects the
licensee to identify mechanisms to assess progress in the following
areas:
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· the use of people from minority groups as sources regardless
of whether the issue being discussed is related to a minority
community;
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· ensuring that stories about ethnic communities do not appear
solely within the context of coverage of cultural celebrations or
crime reporting;
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· ensuring that on-air personalities reflect the diversity of
the community served; and
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· ensuring that reporters and journalists from minority
communities are not assigned exclusively to covering stories of
principal concern to cultural groups.
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44. |
The Commission further expects the corporate plan to address how
the portrayal and presence of cultural minorities will be
incorporated into all stages of the production and acquisition of
non-news programming, including decision making about which programs
will be broadcast. For instance, the plan should address how the
licensee ensures that:
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· those responsible for casting make a concerted effort to
hire visible minority actors in leading and recurring roles;
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· those persons responsible for script development ensure that
minorities are not portrayed in a stereotypical manner; and
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· programming from independent producers reflects the presence
and accurate portrayal of visible minorities.
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Community involvement
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45. |
The corporate plan should set out mechanisms that the licensee
has put in place to ensure that it receives effective input and
feedback from its communities with respect to the reflection of
cultural diversity in its programming.
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Hiring and training
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46. |
The corporate plan should set out the licensee’s plans for
hiring and retention of visible minorities, as well as the training
that it will provide to its staff in this area.
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Annual reports
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47. |
The Commission further expects the licensee to file annual
reports on progress made to achieve the goals set out in the
corporate plan with respect to the reflection of diversity.
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Closed-captioning for the hearing-impaired
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48. |
In the TV policy, the Commission emphasized that the time has
come to require more closed-captioning from French-language
broadcasters, and that it would raise the issue at the time of
individual licence renewals.
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49. |
At the hearing, the licensee reiterated its intention to
close-caption 90% of its programming before expiry of the new
licence term, [translation] "provided an appropriate technology
has been developed by 2004 for the live captioning of
French-language programs." It explained that, above the 40%
level of closed-captioning, it would have to:
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[translation] caption programs broadcast live or quasi-live. By
quasi-live, we mean a program that is recorded shortly before
being broadcast, so we are unable to perform closed-captioning
with the technologies currently available for the French language.
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50. |
The Regroupement québécois pour le sous-titrage (RQST)
submitted at the hearing that, since the first closed-captioned
program in 1981, progress has been very slow. It asked that the
Commission require more of the licensee, considering TVA's
substantial revenues.
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51. |
Further to discussions during the hearing with the licensee and
RQST, the Commission has decided to apply the following measures to
TVA, a major player in the television sector:
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· The Commission requires, by condition of licence,
that CFTM-TV close-caption 100% of its newscasts by September
2004.
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· The Commission requires, by condition of licence,
that the TVA network and CFTM-TV gradually increase the amount of
closed-captioned programming that they broadcast to 90% of all
their programming by the end of the new licence term.
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· The Commission expects the licensee to continue to
provide quality control for closed captions.
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Descriptive video
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52. |
It is apparent from the discussions during the hearing on
descriptive video services (DVS) that the main concerns relating to
implementation of such a service by Canadian broadcasters are
technical or financial in nature. TVA submitted that implementation
of DVS would be more feasible in a digital environment and that this
transition to digital mode could begin in 2004 and be completed by
2008.
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53. |
In its intervention, the National Broadcast Reading Service
(NBRS) argued, with the help of examples, that descriptive video
programming is a reality, that it is increasingly available in
Canada, and that its cost is not prohibitive, taking into account
TVA's revenues.
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54. |
In the TV policy, the Commission recognized the importance of
access to the broadcasting system for all Canadians. It has taken
steps to ensure the reflection of all groups and it has also
established policies and guidelines for broadcasters in order that
listeners and viewers may benefit from broadcasting services adapted
to their needs where technology permits.
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55. |
The Commission expects the large station groups to demonstrate
leadership in establishing descriptive video. With regard to
CFTM-TV's market, the Commission expects TVA to provide,
during peak viewing hours, DVS in accordance with the following
timetable:
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· Years 1 and 2: 2 hours/week
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· Years 3 and 4: 3 hours/week
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· Year 5 and following years: 4 hours/week
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56. |
The Commission emphasizes that the number of hours allocated to
DVS must not consist of more than 50% repeats.
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Depiction of violence on television, sex-role portrayal, and
advertising to children
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57. |
TVA indicated that it adheres fully to the principles and codes
of professional conduct recognized by the industry in Canada. All
programs broadcast, whether they have been produced by independent
producers or by TVA, comply with the CAB's Code of Ethics, the
Sex-Role Portrayal Code, the Broadcast Code for Advertising to
Children, the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards, and the
Voluntary Code Regarding Violence in Television Programming. The
relevant conditions of licence are appended to this decision.
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Diversity of voices
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58. |
In the context of Decision CRTC 2001-384 of today’s date
dealing with the transfer of effective control of TVA to Quebecor
Média inc. (QMI), the Commission raised certain concerns regarding
ownership, especially media cross-ownership, and its potential
impact on the editorial independence of TVA , LCN and LCN Affaires
as well as on the diversity of voices in Quebec.
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59. |
In response to the Commission’s concerns, QMI filed with its
transfer application a list of safeguards designed to ensure the
independence and autonomy of the newsrooms of TVA, LCN and LCN
Affaires, together with a code of professional conduct, and a
commitment to establish a monitoring committee to examine any
complaints related to its adherence to the code. At the hearing, in
response to discussions with the Commission concerning these
matters, QMI filed a proposed revised code of professional conduct
and a set of guidelines to be followed by the monitoring committee.
In Decision 2001-384, the Commission has accepted the revised code,
subject to one amendment and conditional on the establishment of the
monitoring committee.
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60. |
As noted above, once the transfer of TVA to QMI is completed, the
conditions concerning that transaction, set out in Appendices 2, 3
and 4 of this decision, will come into force as conditions of
licence. As indicated in Decision 2001-384, if the Canadian
Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) adopts a code of conduct
concerning cross-media ownership applicable to the industry as a
whole, and if the code is approved by the Commission, the Commission
would be prepared to consider suspending the application of
conditions of licence 2 and 3 in Appendix 2 of this decision. The
CBSC code of conduct would include an appropriate monitoring
mechanism to be administered by the CBSC. Any application by the
licensee to suspend these conditions of licence should include
confirmation that the licensee supports the CBSC code of conduct,
including the monitoring mechanism, and that the licensee is a
member in good standing of the CBSC.
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Interventions
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61. |
The Commission wishes to thank all those who participated in the
public process leading to this decision, either through their
written interventions or through their presentations at the public
hearing.
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Related CRTC documents
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• Decision 92-544 – Licence renewals for the TVA
television network and its mother station, CFTM-TV Montréal
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• Decision 95-27 – Licence amendments for television
programming undertakings concerning the airing of infomercials
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• Decisions 97-195, 97-443,
97-638 – Administrative
renewals
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• Decision 98-488 – Approval of the national distribution
of the French-language television service of TVA Group Inc.
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• Decision 98-508 – One-year renewal for CFTM-TV
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• Decision 2000-245 – Licence amendment for CFTM-TV
Montréal
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• Decision 2000-266 – One-year administrative renewals
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• Decision 2001-283 – Transfer of effective control of
Vidéotron ltée to Quebecor Média inc.
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• Decision 2001-384 – Transfer of effective control of TVA
to Quebecor Média inc.
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• Public Notice 1992-53 – Private French-language
television
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• Public Notices 1999-27 and
1999-27-1– Order respecting
the distribution of the French-language television service of TVA
Group Inc.
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• Public Notice 1999-97 – Building on success – A policy
framework for Canadian television
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• Public Notice 1999-205 – Definitions for new types of
priority programs; revisions to the definitions of television
content categories; definitions of Canadian dramatic programs that
will qualify for time credits towards priority programming
requirements.
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Secretary General
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This decision is to be appended to each licence. It is available
in alternative format upon request, and may also be examined at the
following Internet site: http://www.crtc.gc.ca
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Appendix 1 to Decision CRTC 2001-385
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Terms, conditions of licence and expectations with respect to the
TVA television network and to the television programming undertaking
CFTM-TV Montréal
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Terms
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The licences will be in effect from 1 September 2001 to
31 August 2008.
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Conditions
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1. |
a) The licensee must broadcast, at a minimum, in each broadcast
year, an average of 8 hours per week of Canadian programs in the
priority program categories during prime time (between 7 p.m. and
11 p.m.), from Monday to Sunday. As defined in Public Notice
CRTC 1999-205, the priority program categories are:
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Canadian drama programs; Canadian music and dance and variety
programs; Canadian long-form documentaries; Canadian
regionally-produced programs in all categories other than News
and information and Sports; Canadian entertainment magazine
programs.
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b) For the purpose of fulfilling the above-noted condition, the
licensee may claim the new dramatic programming credit set out in
Public Notice CRTC 1999-205, as may be amended from time to time.
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2. |
The licensee must broadcast a minimum of six (6) special events
per year reflecting the Francophone reality and experience outside
Quebec.
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3. |
The licensee must include, as part of the TVA network
programming, a weekly 30-minute program on Francophone life outside
Quebec.
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The licensee must reinvest at least 43% of the excess of its
revenues over expenses related to the expanded distribution of its
service outside Quebec in the improvement of programming focusing on
Francophones outside Quebec.
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The licensee must file with the Commission, by no later than 30
November each year, for the broadcasting year ending on the
preceding 31 August or portion thereof, a detailed annual
report showing revenues and expenditures related to the expanded
distribution of its service outside Quebec. This report is to
include a detailed breakdown of revenue and expenditure items, as
well as an explanation of, and detailed calculations for, the
allocation of national advertising revenues earned through the
expanded distribution of its service outside Quebec. This report
shall also explain the means by which costs are allocated and/or
segregated as between activities relating to the existing network
operations within Quebec and those additional activities and
obligations relating to its expanded distribution outside Quebec.
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The licensee must file with the Commission, by no later than 30
November every year, the results of an audit performed by an
independent outside auditor for the broadcasting year ending on the
preceding 31 August or portion thereof, certifying that financial
statements related to the expanded distribution of its service
outside Quebec are accurate. This report shall also certify that
stated cost and expenditure allocation methods were applied.
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CFTM-TV must close-caption 100% of its newscasts by September
2004.
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8. |
The TVA network and CFTM-TV must gradually increase the amount of
closed-captioned programming that they broadcast to a level of 90%
of all their programming by the end of the new licence term.
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9. |
The licensee shall adhere to the guidelines on gender portrayal
set out in the Canadian Association of Broadcasters' (CAB) Sex-Role
Portrayal Code for Television and Radio Programming, as amended from
time to time and approved by the Commission. The application of this
condition of licence will be suspended as long as the licensee
remains a member in good standing of the Canadian Broadcast
Standards Council.
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The licensee shall adhere to the provisions of the CAB's
Broadcast code for advertising to children, as amended from time to
time and approved by the Commission.
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11. |
The licensee shall adhere to the guidelines on the depiction of
violence in television programming set out in the CAB's Voluntary
code regarding violence in television programming, as amended from
time to time and approved by the Commission. The application of this
condition of licence will be suspended as long as the licensee
remains a member in good standing of the Canadian Broadcast
Standards Council.
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Requirement
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The Commission requires that TVA submit, within three months of
the date of this decision, corporate guidelines in the form of an
action plan for the new licence term to ensure cultural diversity
both on and off the air.
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Expectations
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The Commission expects the licensee:
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· to maintain, throughout the new licence term, the same
number of hours of drama that were broadcast during the 2000-2001
fall/winter season.
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· to honour its commitment to allocate a minimum of
$16 million in 2001-2002 to the independent production
sector, this amount to increase to a minimum of $20 million
in 2007-2008.
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· to gradually increase its expenditure on independent
production, at a rate of increase similar to that which it has
maintained in the past.
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· to continue to meet the needs of the communities served by
its regional stations, not only in news, but also in terms of the
development of programs in other content categories in the
regions.
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· to ensure that the number of Canadian feature films
broadcast on the TVA network, in the original French-language
version or dubbed in French, increases in each year of the licence
term.
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· to ensure that the time allocated to infomercials remains
marginal in TVA's overall programming schedule.
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· to submit an annual report on the objectives identified in
the guidelines it is to submit concerning the reflection of
cultural diversity on and off the air.
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· to participate in and contribute financially to a task force
whose mandate will be, among other things, to conduct research and
develop practical solutions to facilitate the reflection of
cultural diversity by the industry, in cooperation with community
representatives and experts in the area of cultural diversity.
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· to continue to provide quality control for closed captions.
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· to provide, in CFTM-TV's market, during prime time, a
descriptive video service in accordance with the following
timetable:
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Years 1 and 2: 2 hours/week
Years 3 and 4: 3 hours/week
Year 5 and following years: 4 hours/week
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The above numbers of hours must not consist of more than 50%
repeats.
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Definitions
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For purposes of this decision,
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"Canadian program" means a program that qualifies as a
Canadian program in accordance with the criteria established by the
Commission in Appendices I and II to Public Notice CRTC 2000-42
dated March 17, 2000, entitled Certification for Canadian Programs
– A Revised Approach and published in the Canada Gazette, Part I,
on May 20, 2000;
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"priority programming" means the types of programs set
out in Appendix I of Public Notice CRTC 1999-205 entitled
Definitions for new types of priority programs; revisions to the
definitions of television content categories; definitions of
Canadian dramatic programs that will qualify for time credits
towards priority programming requirements;
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"broadcast year" means the period from 1 September
to 31 August and each twelve-month period thereafter beginning
on 1 September.
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